News of the World

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Ruhollah Zam: EU powers boycott Iran forum over execution

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-55296434

The ambassadors boycotting the forum, scheduled for Monday, are from France, Germany, Italy and Austria.
Organisers of the forum later said they were postponing the event.
It comes amid a growing diplomatic row between Iran and European countries over the killing of Ruhollah Zam.
The journalist had been granted asylum in France after documenting mass protests in Iran in 2017 on his online news feed. He was later captured in Iraq and taken to Iran. He was hanged on Saturday.

This isn't just an economic issue but also a political one. France reacted in no time.

France called the execution "barbaric and unacceptable" and said it ran counter to Iran's international obligations. The EU also strongly condemned the killing "in the strongest terms".
In response, Iran summoned the envoys of France and of Germany, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, in protest at the criticism.

Brexit trade talks: UK and EU to 'go the extra mile' in effort to agree deal

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-55292890
Today was supposed to be the last day where both blocs would be able to agree on each others' terms but the negotiations practically failed. Gladly, they accepted the need to keep working on their issues. Nevertheless, Prime Minister Boris Johnson doubts they will reach any deal no matter how long they discuss the details that prevent them from signing a treaty. The United Kingdom is getting ready to deploy their ships to protect their territorial waters. Of course, the European Union considers this is outrageous and claims UK would have an unfair access to their economic bloc against their members' best interests.

If both the Prime Minister and the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, actually their negotiators in Brussels, are unable to agree on some key terms, next year the UK would have to rely on the World Trade regulations to assist them everytime they deal with the EU customs and vice versa.

Germany to go into lockdown over Christmas

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55292614

Non-essential shops will close across the country from Wednesday, as will schools, with children to be cared for at home wherever possible.
Chancellor Angela Merkel blamed Christmas shopping for a "considerable" rise in social contacts.
The new lockdown will run from 16 December to 10 January. Announcing the move after meeting leaders of the country's 16 states, Mrs Merkel said there was "an urgent need to take action".
Restaurants, bars and leisure centres have already been closed since November, and some areas of the country had imposed their own lockdowns.

So Melana, TsunamiJurai and yamina-chin-chan, you won't be able to go shopping this Christmas season.
Perhaps it's a good time to continue developing your games at home.

Arrests as Indian workers ransack iPhone plant over wages

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-55296433

Indian police have arrested more than 100 workers who went on a rampage over claims of unpaid wages at a Taiwanese-run iPhone factory near Bangalore.
Footage on social media showed smashed CCTV cameras and glass panels, broken lights and a car set on fire at Wistron Infocomm's manufacturing facility.
The workers claim that they have not been fully paid for four months and are being forced to do extra shifts.
In a statement to the AFP news agency, the company did not refer directly to the workers' complaints but said that "the incident was caused by people of unknown identities from outside who intruded into and damaged its facility with unclear intentions".

If they were outsiders as the company claimed, why wouldn't they simply steal some equipment or chips or even phones instead?
Probably they just pretend to let Apple think they respect their workers' rights in an attempt not to lose their business contract.

Peru suspends clinical trials of Chinese Covid vaccine

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20...id-vaccine

Peru has temporarily suspended clinical trials of a Covid vaccine made by Chinese drug giant Sinopharm after detecting neurological problems in one of its test volunteers.

Several days ago we signaled, as we are required, to the regulatory authorities that one of our participants (in trials) presented neurological symptoms which could correspond to a condition called Guillain-Barre syndrome.

Guillain-Barre syndrome is a rare and non-contagious disorder which affects the movement of the arms and legs. Peru declared a temporary health emergency in five regions in June last year following multiple cases.

Curiously the vaccinations were supposed to end this week. There were supposed to analyze the results from 12,000 patients. By the way, this trial was extremely important for Peru, they're about to reach the 1,000,000 infections milestone.

Former aide says Cuomo sexually harassed her 'for years'
Lindsey Boylan, a Democratic candidate for Manhattan borough president, says, 'I *know* I am not the only woman'

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/andrew-...ide-boylan

New York City politico Lindsey Boylan alleged on Twitter Sunday that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo "sexually harassed me for years."
Boylan, who describes herself as a progressive on her Twitter account, worked for the governor's administration from 2015 to 2018, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She worked for Empire State Development, the state's economic development public-benefit organization, until March 2018, when she became deputy secretary for economic development and special adviser to Cuomo.

Now I wonder how much is Cuomo gonna raise during his next fundraiser celebration taking place in a few days time after people learn about his indiscretions.

[DerVVulfman]

The Vaccine is OUT!

San Diego prepares for COVID-19 vaccine distribution!!!

Doses of the Pfizer vaccine began shipping out from a Michigan facility Sunday bound for Southern California distribution centers and other locations in the United States.

Army Gen. Gustave Perna of Operation Warp Speed told reporters Saturday that UPS and FedEx would be delivering the vaccine to nearly 150 distribution centers across the country.

   And the Nay-saysers said Trump couldn't pull it off!  That it couldn't come out this year.

Netanyahu: ‘Business as usual with Iran’ will be mistake

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said it would be a mistake “to go back to business as usual with Iran,” signaling Israeli resistance to an expected push by President-elect Joe Biden to revive the international nuclear deal with Iran.

As long as Iran continues to subjugate and threaten its neighbors, as long as Iran continues calling for Israel’s destruction, as long as Iran continues to bankroll, equip and train terrorist organizations throughout the region and the world, and as long as Iran persists in its dangerous quest for nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them, we shouldn’t go back to business as usual with Iran,” Netanyahu said Sunday. “We should all unite to prevent this major threat to world peace.

    No kidding.  Trump's idea to put pressure on Iran is working... make peace deals with OTHER nations.

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Leaked Chinese Communist Party records show

CCP members employed in senior, specialist and advisory positions
The Communist Party operatives were discovered at 10 consulates in Shanghai

https://www.foxnews.com/world/leaked-chi...s-employed

A new report from The Australian said leaked membership records revealed information regarding almost two million CCP members, leading to the discovery that 10 consulates in the Eastern city have Communist Party workers.
The members are serving as senior political and government affairs specialists, economic advisers, clerks, and executive assistants, according to the paper. 
The database -- which was sent to the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China in mid-September -- shows that CCP members are or have been employed by British, German, Swiss, Indian, New Zealand, Italian, and South African missions in the coastal metropolis and through the Shanghai Foreign Agency Service Department.
In addition, the breach also exposed CCP members at companies like airline giant Boeing and COVID-19 vaccine-maker Pfizer.

And they kept saying that prosecuted operatives were mere victims of racism in the US.

China warns of interference over Bloomberg journalist arrest

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55298328

Chinese citizen Haze Fan was detained last week, accused of endangering national security by authorities.
The European Union (EU) responded by urging China to release all journalists held in connection with their reporting.
In a statement released on Saturday, the EU said it expected Chinese authorities to grant Ms Fan "medical assistance if needed, prompt access to a lawyer of her choice, and contacts with her family".
The Foreign Correspondents Club in China (FCCC) also expressed its solidarity, adding that international media depended on its Chinese staff.
However, the Chinese Embassy in the EU responded on Sunday, saying Ms Fan was "suspected of engaging in criminal activities that endanger China's national security and was recently taken into compulsory measures by the Beijing State Security Bureau in accordance with the law".

This is just another violation of human rights and freedom of speech. Well the CCP only cares about Xi Jinping's speeches anyway.

She was seen being escorted from her apartment building by plain-clothes security officials on 7 December, shortly after she had been in contact with one of her editors.

They don't even dare to let neighbors learn people like her were arrested by actual police officers.

NYPD shoot armed suspect at Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine

NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said police recovered two semi-automatic firearms owned by the suspect and a bag containing a full can of gasoline, rope, wire, multiple knives, a bible and tape.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/nypd-shoot-ar...as-concert

NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said the incident occurred at 3:45 p.m. when a man shouted "kill me" and fired multiple shots just outside the doors of the church at the conclusion of the caroling concert.Shea said that a police officer and community affairs detective who were in the area, and a sergeant located at St. Luke's Hospital nearby responded almost immeidately, firing a total of 15 shots at the gunman. At least one of the shots struck the gunman in the head. He was taken to the hospital in critical condition, where he was later pronounced dead.
The identity of the gunman, who Shea says is believed to have a "lengthy criminal history", has not been released as police await fingerprint verification.

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China's Tainted Cotton

The link above that sends you to the BBC article, includes information based on the summary provided by the Center for Global Policy regarding the current situation the cotton pickers in China.

New evidence from Chinese government documents and media reports shows that hundreds of thousands of ethnic minority laborers in Xinjiang are being forced to pick cotton by hand through a coercive state-mandated labor transfer and “poverty alleviation” scheme.
Previously, evidence for forced labor in Xinjiang pertained only to low-skilled manufacturing, including the production of textiles and apparel.
This report provides evidence for coercive labor related to all cotton produced in Xinjiang.
The evidence shows that in 2018, three Uyghur regions alone mobilized at least 570,000 persons into cotton-picking operations through the government’s coercive labor training and transfer scheme.

Summary and Full Report

Actually the US government knew something about such forced labor.

On Dec. 2, 2020, the United States placed a Withhold Release Order on cotton produced by the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps. However, this entity only produces 33 percent of Xinjiang’s cotton and only 0.4 percent of its highest-quality long-staple cotton.

Even if machines exist that could prevent China from depending heavily on workers to pick cotton, they simply rely on their Uighur slaves to collect cotton of different qualities, especially the best cotton available there. They don't choose to become a cotton picker, the CCP picks them. Officials or police officers supervise them, cameras are watching them the whole time. They examine their mental health, they can get indoctrinated by the authorities. If any of them has been sent to a reeducation camp, that person will likely wind up working there like anybody else. Minorities, including Uighurs, are their favorite, citizens belonging to the Han majority are being systematically discarded; the CCP depends less on Han people every year that passes.

Indoctrination

References to “guiding” the pickers to “consciously resist illegal religious activities” indicate that the policies are designed predominantly for Xinjiang’s Uighurs and other traditionally Muslim groups.
There are plenty of clues that this enthusiasm is less than whole-hearted. One report describes a village where people were “unwilling to work in agriculture”.
Officials had to visit again to perform “thought education work”. Eventually 20 were sent off, with a plan in place to “export” 60 more.

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Australia launches WTO appeal against China's barley tariff

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-55328102

Beijing has imposed blockages or levies to dairy, meat, wine and others as political tensions have worsened.
This has caused alarm in Australia as China is its biggest trading partner, accounting for close to 40% of exports.
Earlier this week, Chinese state-controlled media reported that Australian exports of thermal coal - the third biggest export to China - would face restrictions.
The Australian government has denied [the alleged illegal dumping practices], and said its repeated requests to Beijing for dialogue on the trade blows have been ignored.

Well, China should not get away with it.  
Sadly, there's no guarantee they will comply with the eventual WTO's resolution.

LA's new DA George Gascon to drop special charges in accused cop killer's case
DA George Gascon has drawn the wrath of the officer's sister

https://www.foxnews.com/us/las-da-george...op-killers

Completely in shock, I can’t even tell you, my heart just dropped, I couldn’t believe it.
He should be there for the families, we are the victims here, not this person who shot him. I don’t understand what his purpose is to let these murderers out of jail, I don’t get it, he’s like the Devil, I don’t understand it.

Rhett Nelson, 31, of Utah, was accused of walking up to Deputy Solano at a Jack in the Box fast-food outlet in Alhambra in June 2019 and shooting him in the back of the head. The 50-year-old Solano died two days later.
Earlier that same day, prosecutors said Nelson also fatally shot Dmitry Koltsov, a professional skateboarder from Russia.

So Democrats don't care about people's lives anymore. They now give criminals free rein to rob and kill people.

San Francisco committee wants to remove Abraham Lincoln's name from high school
At issue is the 16th president's treatment of Native Americans

https://www.foxnews.com/us/san-francisco...-americans

The discussion for Lincoln centered around his treatment of First Nation peoples because that was offered first.
Once he met criteria in that way, we did not belabor the point.

So let's forget he supported black people or that he was a victim of his own fame when Booth killed him.
Other potential victims would be George Washington High School, Herbert Hoover Middle School and Paul Revere K-8.
Let's now take a look at his remarks on California Senator Dianne Feinstein.

She is one of the few living examples on our list, so she still has time to dedicate the rest of her life to the upliftment of Black, First Nations and other people of color. She hasn’t thus far.

So if she doesn't work especifically to improve their situation and nobody else's, she'd remain a politically incorrect politician!?  
Wow! They spare nobody, not even their own partisans.

San Francisco board condemns naming of local hospital

for Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, wife Priscilla Chan

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 10-1 in favor of the resolution

https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/s...zuckerberg

San Francisco General Hospital was renamed the Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital in 2015 after the couple donated $75 million to help fund a new treatment center. However, local officials grew increasingly critical of the name change in recent years as Facebook faced scrutiny over its business practices and approach to user data privacy.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 10-1 in favor of the resolution. The vote was nonbinding and the hospital will not be required to reverse the name change.

Facebook has become the #1 target of attacks as of recently.  
San Francisco seems to love stepping on their rich or famous, don't you think?

New York Gov. Cuomo signs Protect Our Courts Act prohibiting ICE from making arrests in state courthouses
The presence of ICE agents in courthouses has created friction between judges and the DHS

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/new-yor...documented

The Protect Our Courts Act, signed Tuesday, comes amid concerns from immigration advocates that fears of being arrested deter undocumented immigrants from making court appearances. The bill prevents Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents without a warrant signed by a federal judge, from arresting anyone inside a statehouse, or those going to or leaving a court proceeding.
The law doesn't prevent a judge from issuing an arrest warrant.

So ICE should let them get away from justice if they don't get the warrant in time!?  
Where did the condition of illegal alien go there? Basically they're treating them as if they were legal residents already!

Great Pyramid: Lost Egyptian artefact found in Aberdeen cigar box

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-nor...d-55315623

The small fragment of 5,000-year-old wood - which is now in several pieces - is said to be "hugely significant".
The engineer Waynman Dixon originally discovered it among items inside the pyramid's Queens Chamber in 1872.
Two other items found by Waynman Dixon - a ball and hook - are now housed in the British Museum, but the wood was missing.
Results have recently been returned and show that the wood can be dated to somewhere in the period 3341-3094 BC.

That cedar fragment is original to the Great Pyramid, meaning nobody else had left it behind while illegally exploring the ancient building.
So the moral here would be to place stuff where they belong to. Otherwise be patient and wait for several decades to find an innocent looking cigar tin containing your beloved belonging.

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Billionaire Bezos' Amazon warehouse employees depend on food stamps in 9 states

Bezos, the richest man in the world, benefitted from pandemic conditions

More than 4,000 warehouse workers at Amazon, the e-commerce giant founded by the world's richest man, depend on food stamps to make ends meet in nine states, according to new U.S. Government Accountability Office data this week.
The report said 70% of food stamp recipients who work at the United States' second-largest employer and other chain retailers like Walmart work full time.
While health insurance is provided to employees, opportunities for growth are rare if there are any, according to Bloomberg.
In addition, Bloomberg reported Thursday that an analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed wages for warehouse workers fell after buildings opened for business in 68 counties.

And people often complain about explotation in Asian countries but were unable to see how Amazon does the same in US.

FDA panel endorses Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine

Upon formal FDA approval, Americans could see initial 6 million doses distributed next week

A U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted Thursday to endorse Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine, clearing the way for FDA leaders to authorize emergency mass distribution amid an ongoing surge of COVID-19 cases across the country.
The vote was 20-0. One committee member abstained. 
The committee was charged with voting on the following question: "Based on the totality of scientific evidence available, do the benefits of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine outweigh its risk for use in individuals 18 years of age and older?"

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Space Force troopers become Guardians

The new name comes after the sixth branch of the military unveiled its logo, flag, and "Sempra Supra" motto earlier this year.

Guardians is a name with a long history in space operations, tracing back to the original command motto of Air Force Space Command in 1983, 'Guardians of the High Frontier.
The name Guardians connects our proud heritage and culture to the important mission we execute 24/7, protecting the people and interest of the U.S. and its allies.

Why did they create such a branch of the military?  
Well, other nations already care a lot about space.

Russia tested a weapon system "capable of destroying satellites in low Earth orbit" on Tuesday. 
China is also developing weapons that could take down American satellites, and Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard sent its first satellite to space in the spring.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Social media companies

should increase censorship to combat misinformation

The NBA Hall of Famer cited examples involving conservative voices

Abdul-Jabbar, 73, used Rudy Giuliani, Roseanne Barr, Letitia Wright, Jon Voight and J.K. Rowling as examples of why social media companies should do more to combat the spread; pointing to Giuliani’s stance on the 2020 presidential election, Wright’s anti-vax post, Rowling’s views on transgendered people and Barr and Voight’s conservative rants.

So anybody that has a different opinion should be blocked outright!?
If that was the case, then why they'd never walled up BLM accounts to stop spreading hatred?

Epstein ex-associate Jean-Luc Brunel placed under formal investigation

A former associate of deceased US financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has been placed under formal investigation and remanded in custody in France on suspicion of sex crimes.
French modelling agent Jean-Luc Brunel is accused of sexual harassment and the rape of minors aged between 15 and 18.
Mr Brunel, 74, has denied wrongdoing.
Mr Brunel was detained at Paris's Charles de Gaulle airport on Wednesday as he was preparing to board a flight to Senegal.
He co-founded French modelling agency Karin Models in 1977, and MC2 Model Management in the US with funding from Epstein.
US court documents allege that Mr Brunel procured girls for Epstein, flying them from France to the US and promising them modelling contracts.

US cyber-attack: Russia 'clearly' behind SolarWinds operation, says Pompeo

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has blamed Russia for what is being described as the worst-ever cyber espionage attack on the US government.
"We can say pretty clearly that it was the Russians that engaged in this activity," Mr Pompeo said on Friday.
President Trump downplayed the attack's severity - saying it was "under control" - and cast doubt on Russia's role, hinting at Chinese involvement.
The hack, targeting software made by US firm SolarWinds, was found last week.
However, it had been going on for months. Russia has denied any involvement in the attack.
Among the US agencies targeted was the office that manages nuclear weapons.
Several other organisations around the world, including in the UK, are understood to have been targeted by hackers using the same network management software.

Keep in mind US authorities refer to this hack as the Sunburst.  

NY Times loses awards for Islamic State podcast over false reporting

The New York Times has returned an award and had another withdrawn after it found discrepancies in its podcast on the Islamic State group.
After a two-month investigation, the newspaper said the podcast, Caliphate, failed to meet its editorial standards.
In the 2018 series, Shehroze Chaudhry, one of its central figures, claims he travelled to Syria and joined IS.
But the Times said on Friday that it found "a history of misrepresentations" about his involvement with the group.
As a result, it has returned a Peabody Award for the podcast. The Overseas Press Club said it had also rescinded its Lowell Thomas Award given to the show's producers.

China biodegradable plastics failing to solve pollution crisis

A massive increase in biodegradable plastic production in China is outpacing the country's ability to degrade the materials, according to a new report published by the charity Greenpeace.
China - the world's largest producer of plastic waste - introduced bans earlier this year on several types of non-degradable single-use plastics, prompting manufacturers to ramp up production of biodegradable versions.
According to Greenpeace, 36 companies in China have planned or built new biodegradable plastic manufacturing facilities, adding production capacity of more than 4.4 million tonnes per year - a more than sevenfold increase in less than 12 months.
China's e-commerce industry is on track to generate an estimated 5 million tonnes of biodegradable plastic waste per year by 2025, when the country's single-use plastic bans come into effect nationwide, the charity said.

Learn what one of the researches found out about this alleged crisis.

In the absence of controlled composting facilities, most biodegradable plastics end up in landfills, or worse, in rivers and the ocean.
Switching from one type of plastic to another cannot solve the plastics pollution crisis that we're facing.

Macron in ‘stable’ condition after positive Covid-19 test, Élysée Palace says

French President Emmanuel Macron, who has tested positive for the coronavirus, is in stable condition, and examinations have given reassuring results, a statement from his office said Saturday.
"The medical condition of the president is stable compared with Friday,” the Élysée Palace statement quoted Jean-Christophe Perrochon, the chief doctor of the presidency.
The statement said that Macron, who is working in self-isolation from an official residence outside Paris, "is still presenting the same symptoms of the Covid-19 illness (fatigue, coughing, stiffness)".
But they were not preventing him from carrying out his duties.

I wonder if any French news reporter or anchor had ever considered Macron would become another victim of the Wuhan virus. Several journalists, including some Costa Rican, seriously considered Trump would kick the bucket. Losers!

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Nations impose UK travel bans over new variant

European nations have begun to apply travel bans with the UK after it reported a more infectious and "out of control" coronavirus variant.
Ireland, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium are all halting flights and travel. The measures vary and are initially generally short-term.
An EU meeting will be held on Monday morning to discuss a more co-ordinated response.
The new variant has spread quickly in London and south-east England.

Why do they care about this new variant of the Wuhan virus?
Even if we can't say it's deadlier than those previously found all around the world, it might mean it's growing either stronger or weaker than its parent virus. You see, they always fear the unknown.  

The World Health Organization (WHO) says the same mutation has also been detected in the Netherlands, Denmark and Australia.
Dr Catherine Smallwood, of WHO Europe, said that as of 20 December, the numbers in those countries were small, nine in Denmark and one each in the other two nations. But she said other countries had notified WHO of other variants "that also carry some of the genetic changes seen in the UK variant".

Catholic Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, also a former diplomat, once wrote a letter to US President Donald Trump where he mentioned the existence of the Covid-19 AND Covid-21. So is this the virus he was waiting for? Will it be named Covid-20 or Covid-21 at the end?

China tails US warship as it sails through Taiwan Strait

The ship’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the US commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

[Such missions] deliberately raise the temperature of the Taiwan issue, as they fear calm in the Taiwan Strait, and send flirtatious glances to Taiwan independence forces, seriously jeopardizing peace and stability in the strait.

In Taipei, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said it monitored the Mustin’s movements, and that "the situation was as normal."
So what does China actually think about this patrols?
It's quite simple indeed. They just hate that US monitors their maritime agenda that includes provocations to scare the hell out of Taiwan, building artificial islands to claim new territories, and their valuable resources located under that sea. Nothing prevents the US or any other nation from navigating those waters but China already believes they're totally exclusive for China and nobody else. Besides they didn't expect the US Navy to keep visiting the place during the current pandemic.

UK faces Brexit limbo

The failure to meet the European parliament’s deadline means that ministers on the EU council representing the bloc’s capitals may need to “provisionally apply” a deal on 1 January to avoid a no-deal exit until parliament votes later in the month.
If the talks go much deeper into December, however, there may not be time for the EU capitals to translate and scrutinise the agreed text, leaving the UK to exit the transition period without new trade and security arrangements with Brussels.
Contingency measures would have to be agreed to bridge the gap before a deal could come into force, but such a scenario raises the danger of ports and security services being left in legal limbo.

For months Prime Minister Boris Johnson have mentioned that UK might get away with it even if there's no deal by the end of the year. Since they don't like EU's stand on fisheries among other conditions they pretend to impose the UK, the PM might think that the WTO rules are far better than giving up on UK's sovereignty. Personally, I seriously think they'd only succeed if they forget about the globalist agenda 2030.

British banks under pressure over £45m loans to firm with links to Myanmar military
Campaigners say the deals revealed in new report are a breach of firms’ human rights responsibilities

HSBC and Standard Chartered have loaned $60m (£44.5m) to Vietnamese telecom giant Viettel in the last four years, a period when the Myanmar military has been accused of committing war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. Viettel is a major investor in Mytel, a Myanmar mobile network that, since its launch in June 2018, has grown to become the second-biggest operator in the country with over 10 million users.
A Myanmar state-owned enterprise, Star High Co Ltd, a subsidiary of the military-operated Myanmar Economic Corporation, has a 28% stake in the network; Viettel’s international telecommunications investment subsidiary, Viettel Global JSC, controls 49%; and Myanmar National Telecom Holdings, representing a group of Myanmar companies, owns 23%. The shareholding structure, which confirms Mytel is a major revenue generator for the Myanmar military, is revealed in a report by the campaign group Justice For Myanmar (JFM).
The report, based on open-source material and a trove of documents that emerged when a Viettel subsidiary accidentally published online internal files relating to the company’s operations in Myanmar, reveals how Mytel has been upgrading the Myanmar military’s infrastructure, including the army’s network of fibre-optic cables.

Seriously, that's as immoral as financing Hezbollah or Antifa or the Muslim Brotherhood.

Israel starts Covid vaccine drive as Facebook groups taken down

‘Mendacious’ content removed on request of the Israeli health ministry as vaccination drive gets under way

The justice ministry said that, at its request, Facebook took down four groups at the weekend that had disseminated texts, photographs and videos with “deliberately mendacious content designed to mislead about coronavirus vaccines”.
Such “fake news” included arguments that vaccines would be used to plant government tracking chips in recipients’ bodies; to poison them; or to subject them to medical experimentation, the ministry said.
A Facebook spokeswoman confirmed that four Hebrew-language groups had been taken down as part of the company’s policy against spreading misinformation regarding the vaccines.

I'm sorry to disappoint you, Netanyahu, but the last part concerning the medical experimentation is true.
Nobody can deny that there's no guarantee people might not die after receiving the shot for drugs only got emergency approval. That's not the same as intensively testing the vaccines for a few years till they can certify that pretty much nobody would pass away after the inoculation. The very same fact that health workers should keep epinephrine and other drugs at hand to treat the severe symptoms of the vaccine proves my point. When you normally visited your doctor, you never expected the nurse to give you a deadly shot. You never watched them keep other bottles and needles at hand so why should we do it now? It's good to know there's a vaccine but they should seriously consider they should still test it for another half a year or so before feeling overconfident as to risk people's lives by causing unexpected emergencies at the hospitals, clinics or Walgreen's.

Hezbollah sees threat in US president's final days

Leaders fear Donald Trump and Israel will act against Iran and Hezbollah before Joe Biden’s arrival

In the organisation’s heartland, Hezbollah members are watching the clock – and the skies. Israeli jets have been streaking overhead for more than a month, and over the past few weeks the frequency of flights has sharply increased, as has security in Beirut’s southern suburbs, the nerve centre of the region’s most powerful militant group.
Leaders and senior members fear that Trump, his outgoing secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, and Israel intend to use the weeks before Joe Biden’s inauguration to act decisively against Iran and Hezbollah before the new president takes a widely anticipated softer stance.

They’ve got their window and they want to finish what they started, said one . “But don’t worry, the Sayyid [the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah] is safe.”

It's quite ironic this come from a movement that has kidnapped and impoverished all Palestinians in the Gaza Strip forcing them to become its pawns alias cannon fodder unless they prefer to rebel and end up being beaten and tied to some vehicle only to be drag across the streets as a warning for other "dissidents". They even steal donations to feed their leaders and purchase new weapons.

Trump campaign takes fight over Penn. election, ballot laws to Supreme Court

President Trump still refuses to concede the outcome and continues to promote allegations that there was massive voter fraud

President Trump’s campaign team on Sunday filed an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court asking it to reverse several cases by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to change the state’s mail ballot law before and after the 2020 presidential election.
The president’s campaign alleged in a statement that the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court’s changing of the law was a violation of Article II of the U.S. Constitution and Bush v. Gore.
The petition cites a "related Pennsylvania case" where Justice Samuel Alito and two other justices observed the constitutionality of the state court's decision to extend the statutory deadline for receipt of mail ballots from 8 p.m. on Election Day to 5 p.m. three days later. 
The campaign team said the constitutionality of the court's decision had "national importance" and may violate the U.S. Constitution.

This isn't about justice but courage. If the SCOTUS keeps running away from its duty to properly analyze this claim, it would definitely demonstrate they fear somebody's retaliation. No matter who might have been involved in altering rules either by following the proper procedures before the 2020 elections or by committing a serious crime against democracy, ensuring nobody intervened in the last elections is critical, is a must. Not because someone pretends to end this process this December means everything's OK. They should study it first instead of acting as best friends of the Democratic Party.
Or is Daddy Soros via his Open Society gangsters gonna punish the Justices if they listen to the US President's complains?

[kyonides]

Executive Order on Promoting Beautiful Federal Civic Architecture

Section 1. Purpose. Societies have long recognized the importance of beautiful public architecture. Ancient Greek and Roman public buildings were designed to be sturdy and useful, and also to beautify public spaces and inspire civic pride.
...
President George Washington and Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson consciously modeled the most important buildings in Washington, D.C., on the classical architecture of ancient Athens and Rome. They sought to use classical architecture to visually connect our contemporary Republic with the antecedents of democracy in classical antiquity, reminding citizens not only of their rights but also their responsibilities in maintaining and perpetuating its institutions.
Washington and Jefferson personally oversaw the competitions to design the Capitol Building and the White House.

In the 1950s, the Federal Government largely replaced traditional designs for new construction with modernist ones. This practice became official policy after the Ad Hoc Committee on Federal Office Space proposed what became known as the Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture (Guiding Principles) in 1962.
...
Some of these structures, such as the Hubert H. Humphrey Department of Health and Human Services Building and the Robert C. Weaver Department of Housing and Urban Development Building, were controversial, attracting widespread criticism for their Brutalist designs.

The executive order clearly shows that US President Trump pretends to go back to the classical styled architecture to characterize or beautify any new federal buildings.

Trump administration publishes list of Chinese, Russian companies with alleged military ties
The list names 103 companies that are restricted from purchasing U.S. goods, technology

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the move establishes a new process to "assist exporters in screening their customers for military end users.” The “military end user” designation requires U.S. companies to obtain licenses in order to sell to the firms.
Military end-users include those in national armed services and national police, government intelligence or reconnaissance organizations, and any person or entity that supports or contributes to the maintenance or production of military items even if their business is primarily non-military.

It seems US President Trump isn't slacking off at all. He still keeps his eyes watching over US competitors.

Trump meets with members of Congress plotting Electoral College objections on January 6

Some House members plan to challenge the certification of Biden's win

President Trump Monday huddled with members of Congress to discuss plans to object to President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College win and to force a debate on allegations of voter fraud.
Rep.-elect Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., attended the White House meeting and said there's growing support for GOP lawmakers from the House and Senate to challenge the election results when a Joint Session of Congress convenes on Jan. 6 to certify the Electoral College result. The vote was 306 to 232 in Biden's favor.
Congressional rules require a House member and senator to simultaneously challenge a state’s electoral slate when they jointly convene on Jan. 6. Greene said senators are on board, though she declined to name them publicly.

We will be raising objections to the Electoral College votes for Joe Biden for multiple states.

From the very moment some states let their workers implement the Clinton Foundation's Dominion voting machines and servers in their poll stations, it was clear there was no way these elections were clean at all. Did they forget how they used them in Venezuela years ago? Even its OS isn't safe and could be easily hacked after they applied this year's patch.
Senator Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has mocked Trump for his alleged tantrums but who wouldn't keep fighting there? He actually got more votes than 4 years ago, many witnesses complained about ballots being added in the last minute, some were manipulated, others were counted when no Republican watchers were around. All this matter really stinks from the very beginning.

Chicago area prosecutor wants to wipe records for marijuana dealers

Cocaine & heroin could be next

Cook County State Attorney Kim Foxx looks to make it 'easier' to expunge records

Cook County State Attorney Kim Foxx revealed an ambitious plan to wipe clean the records of convicted marijuana dealers and expressed a willingness to support expunging the records of those found guilty of more serious crimes such as heroin and cocaine possession.
Foxx, who oversees prosecutions in a county that includes Chicago, told the Chicago Sun-Times that her goal is to help people move on with their lives by automatically expunging some criminal records so they don't have to go through the process themselves. Her office has automatically wiped clean 2,200 low-level marijuana possession convictions of 30 grams or less, the legal amount of marijuana allowed on one's possession, according to the newspaper. She had dismissed more than 25,000 felony cases by August 2020.

Anita Alvarez was lame but Foxx has been the worst state attorney in Chicago.

If we recognize substance abuse disorder as a health condition, then we must modify our justice system to treat it as such.
Criminalizing health is not in the interest of public safety.

Criminalizing health? They get in troubles because they don't care about their own health or anybody else's if they're dealers.

[DerVVulfman]

Trump calls for Congress to amend COVID relief bill

It really is a disgrace. “It’s called the COVID relief bill, but it has almost nothing to do with COVID.

The package in this 5,000+ package has cash for two National Mall museums, $10 million for gender programs in Pakistan, and $2.5 million for internet security. With all that, it only offers $600 to Americans!

I am asking Congress to amend this bill and increase the ridiculously low $600 to $2,000 or $4,000 for a couple.

Trump will not veto this package, but has hopes Congress will heed his advice. With the package having been approved by 94%, it is veto-proof anyway.

Pelosi on Trump's Stimulus Increase:
"Let's Do It!"

House Democrats responded to President Trump's call to increase stimulus payments to $2,000 per adult by saying they're ready to bring the measure to the floor by "unanimous consent" this week.

Wait!  Hold up!  They agreed almost IMMEDIATELY!?!?  I want off the planet!

Trump Authorizes Durham To Use Classified Information For Grand Jury Proceedings

Durham’s investigation appears to be following up on findings from a Justice Department inspector general’s report that criticized the FBI for withholding information from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) in order to get warrants to surveil Carter Page.

   Just before this, A.G. William Barr said Durham made “significant progress” in his investigation.

“SHAMEFUL”:
Ilhan Omar Unleashes on Ocasio-Cortez & Other Congress Members
Over COVID Vaccine

On Sunday, far-left congresswoman and member of “The Squad” Ilhan Omar unloaded on members of Congress including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for taking the COVID-19 vaccine before vulnerable populations including the elderly had taken it.

We are not more important [than] frontline workers, teachers, etc. who are making sacrifices [every day]. Which is why I won’t take it. People who need it most, should get it.

   Dr. Anthony Fauci did recommend that leaders like Trump/Biden/etc get the vaccine for both security and safety reasons, and it was suggested that such actions promote the vaccine's use.

Pressley says she’ll fight to give
prisoners priority for COVID vaccine

Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley said she would work to make it a priority for prisoners to get the coronavirus vaccine, as Massachusetts reportedly announced that inmates would be among the first to be inoculated after health care workers and the elderly.

And I’m going to continue to fight for our most vulnerable communities who have been disproportionally impacted by the virus, for our health care workers, for our essential workers, for incarcerated men and women to be prioritized in the distribution of the vaccine.

Waitaminute!     Hold up!  What about the most vulnerable... the Elderly! They're the most at risk!